William b



l (N6 Model.)

`W. B. DODGE.

ROAD UART. No. 439,056. Patented 00u11. 21, 1890.

ma man versus ce., amo-1mm., immuun, n. e,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM B. DODGE, OF STUARTS DRAFT, VIRGINIA, ASSIGNOR OF ON E-HALF TO J. H. RANKIN, OF SAME PLACE.

CART.

SPECIFICATION forming part 0f Letters Patent N O. 439,056, dated October 21, 1890.

Application filed May 3, 1890.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM B. DODGE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Stuarts Draft, in the county of Augusta and State of Virginia, have invented certain' new and useful Improvements in Road-Carts; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to that class of light vehicles which are mounted on two wheels by means of springconnections and usually called road-carts, and its object is to overcome the horse-motion; to soften as much as possible the j olting eiect of travel on rough roads, whether the said j olts are directly forward or to one side; to provide means for properly balancing the weight of the load over the axle, whether there be one or more riders and whether the vehicle be traveling upon level ground or upon ascending or descending grades, in order that the cart may not tip backward in going uphill nor bear too heavily upon the horse in going down; means whereby the body and seat will automatically accommodate themselves to sidewise tipping of the axle, so as to remain in nearly a level position while traveling upon a sidling road, and some minor objects, as will hereinafter appear.

To this end my invention ponsists in the construction and combination of parts forming portions of a road-cart, hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure I is a side view of a road-cart, showing my invention without the road-wheel. Fig. II is a rear view of the main spring and its hangings, and Fig. III is a side View of the same. Fig. IV is a side View, and Fig. V is atop view, of the forward hangings for the body. Fig. VI is a side view, and Fig. VII is a rear View, partly in transverse vertical section, showing the seat-hangings.

l represents the axle, which may be straight or of any other form preferred.

2 represents the thills, rigidly secured at their rear ends to the axle.

4 represents the body, preferably made Serial No. 350,486. (No model.)

with curved iron sides 5,supporting any suitable fiooring and dash-board.

6 represents the main spring, upon the middle of which the body is secured by means of a bolster 7. The spring is bow-shaped and hung atits ends upon the thills by means of clips 8 and stirrups 9. These clips are rigidly bolted to the thills and provided each with two or more hooks 10, upon which the stirrups 9 may be hung to raise or lower the body. The stirrups hang loosely both to the said hooks 10 and to the spring 6, so that the spring and the body supported thereon may swing freely sidewise, and each stirrup straddles its supporting-hooks 10 with its legs so far apart as to permit the spring and body to swing freely forward and backward.

The spring 6 is longer than the transverse distance between the hooks l0, in order that both stirrups 9 may slant outward at their lower ends, so that when the body swings sidewise one end of the spring will be raised as much as the other is lowered. Now if one wheel is on higher ground than the other, the body and spring will gravitate toward the lower side, the stirrup at the upper side will swing downward, and the other stirrup will swing upward to the same amount, thus keeping the body and seat level. Furthermore, if the cause of one wheels rising be a stone or other obstruction suddenly run over there is very little jolt, because the sudden rise of the spring at one end is compensated for by its fall at the other end, so that the body supported midway thereon is not materially raised, and the spring readily deadens the little jolt that there is1 so that it cannot be felt by the rider. It' the two stirrups were hung vertically or parallel to each other, the body would always remain parallel with the axle and be equally tipped and jolted, and if they hung inward with their lower ends nearest together the opposite effect to that described as my invention would be produced, and the body would be caused to tip more 9: than the axle. v

From the frame of the body an arm l1 projects forward on the plane of the cross-bar 12, which connects the thills, and is connected with the said cross-bar by means of a clevis roo 13. This clevis is hinged at its forward end upon a vertical bolt 14, which passes through the cross-bar 12, which vertical bolt may also be the attaching-pin for the whiflietree 15.

16 is a vertical bolt in the rear end of the clevis 13, upon which the arm 11 is fitted to rise and fall freely.

41 is a rod rigidly connecting the upper and lower arms of the clevis 13.

17 is a spiral spring around.l the bolt 16 above the arm 11 to elastically resist upward motion thereof, and 18 is a similar spring below the arm to elastically resist downward motion.

The seat is located relative to thehangings 6 9 lO, so that the weight of the rider tips it backward a little and presses upward on the spring 17; but these hangings are a little forward of the axle, so that the weight of the body, seat, and rider may be balanced as nearly as possible over the axle. To maintain this same balance while ascending and descending steephills, the seat is mounted upon two bails 19, each extending across under the seat through hinge-bearings 20, notched into longitudinal bolsters 21, secured to the seat, and each bail isv pivoted at its endsto the side bars 5 of the body. A seat thus hung may move forward and back, and yet be heldin a horizontalV 'position by the twobails.

22 represents notched segments rigidly secured to the side irons 5, and 23 is a springbolt hung to the holsters 21 by means of springs 24 and adapted to engage the notches in segments-22 to hold the seat fixed over the axle. The ends of the bolt 23 project beyond the segments far enough to serve as handles, which the rider may raise to disengage ihe bolt from the segments and permit the seat to be swung forward or back to keep the weight centrally over the axle in going uphill and down and to adjust it for the weight of one or two riders-to make it easier for both horse and rider. A horse rises from the ground by a steady motion, but he comes down with a jolt, and for this reason I balance my cartbody so as to bear upward normally upon the thills so far as the body and load are concerned, while the load is brought centrally over the axle by the hangings of the body being a littleforward thereof. I hinge the clevis 13 to the cross-bar 12, in order that it may coact with the side hangings in permitting the body to swing sidewise and forward. and back.

25 represents a receptacle or box, which in itself is no unusual thing in carriages; but in order that it may not interfere either with the independent movement of the seat on its bails nor with the axle when the body swings about I hang it between and below the side irons 5 and to the rear ofthe axle. The thills extend horizontally forward to the front of the body on a level with its side rails 26 to be out of the way in getting into and out of the cart,

and they are bent upward at the front of the body to bring the cross-bar 12 onto the proper level at which to attach the whiffletree and the forward arm 11.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I believe to be new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is the following:

1. The combination, in road-carts, of an axle, a pair of thills secured rigidly thereto and extending horizontally forward therefrom, clips having two or more hooks, each secured to the outer sides of the thills forward of the axle, a bow-shaped spring extending crosswise beneath and beyond the thills, links pivoted to the ends of the spring and freely hung upon the said hooks in a position slanting materially outward fromv the hooksV to the spring, and a cart-body attached midway upon saidV spring, substantiallytasv shown! and described,whereby the bodyis free to swing both longitudinally and laterally,at the same time tending to maintain the seat nearer level? than the axle.

2. The combinationof a cart-body-hung at its forward end to the running-gear byacen- .tral hanging having bothlengthwiseand sidewise free motion, a bow-shapedv spring supporting the body midway and extending across beneathv its pointsV of support', and links pivotedtothe outer ends of the spring and hung upon the running-gear, each in an outwardly-slanting position, substantially as shown and described, whereby bothy the-seat portion and the forward end of the-body are at liberty to swing in any required direction to maintain the seat ina nearly level position.` both onsteep hills and sidling roads.

3. The combination of a vehicle-body having retaining notches-at its sides, a seat having forward and backward movement upon the body, and a spring-bolt rigidly secured midway under the seat andi adapted to engage the said notches, the ends of the said bolt projecting horizontally as handles beyond the notches, substantially as-show-nand described.

4. The combination of a cart-body provided with the perforated forwardly-extending arm 11, thills fixed to an axle andhaving a cross-bar joining them in front ofthe body, a stirrup hinged at its forward end to a vertical pin in the said cross-bar andv having a vertical bolt at its rear end, andf two springs upon the said rear bolt, the aforesaid arm being freely fitted upon the said bolt be- IOO IIO

tween the springs, substantially as shown and I described.

5. The combination of a cart-body provided said forwardly-extending arm of the body freely fitted upon the said bolt between the of the said segments, substantially as shown v springs, substantially as shown and described. and described. 1o 6. The combination of a. cart-body having In testimony whereofaix my signature in two notched segments fixed to its sides, a seat, presence of two witnesses.

5 two bails extending across beneath and jour- WILLIAM B. DODGE.

naled thereto and pivoted at their ends to the Witnesses: sides of the body, and a spring-bolt attached E. M. OUSHIYG, to the seat and adapted to engage the notches R. B. HUNDLEY. 

